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The perfect is the enemy of the good. Fussing with our posture can get obsessive. It becomes another excuse for beating up ourselves. There is a time for attention toward detail, and a time to let it go and move on. Too much attention to detail, or too little, is not balanced. And, of course, balance is fundamental to good posture.

Hope Serpentine. You can find her at aerialempowerment.com

Tight rope artists do not maintain exact posture centered over the rope. They allow some slack, because they know that rigidly trying to be prefect will make them tense and interfere with the ability to make tiny adjustments.

“Any posture in itself is acceptable in itself as long as it does not conflict with the law of nature, which is that the skeletal structure should counteract the pull of gravity, leaving the muscles free for movement. The nervous system and the frame develop together under the influence of gravity in such a way that the skeleton will hold up the body without expending energy despite the pull of gravity. If, on the other hand, the muscles have to carry out the job of the skeleton, not only do they use energy needlessly, but they are prevented from carrying out their main function of changing the position of the body, that is, movement.” ~M. Feldenkrais

About Somanaut

A blog addressing the experience of living in a body. Posts on topics including anatomy, function, health care and politics, self care and learning.

Dan Schmidt is a Feldenkrais practitioner and a bodyworker in Salt Lake City, UT. He has been working in private practice and clinical settings for 25 years. He teaches classes for the public and for massage therapists.